Herbie Mann & Bobby Jaspar - Flute Flight (1957) [Jazz][mp3 320]

Herbie Mann & Bobby Jaspar - Flute Flight

Recorded Rudy Van Gelder at Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, New Jersey March 21, 1957

Release Date: March 21, 1957

Bitrate: 320 kbps



Although he gets equal billing with the Belgian flutist Bobby Jaspar, Herbie Mann only appears on two tracks of this re-release of a pair of 1957 sessions. The session that included Mann also features Jaspar, pianist Tommy Flanagan, guitarist Joe Puma, bassist Endell Marshall and drummer Bobby Donaldson.



Though Mann's only aboard for two cuts, they make up half of the playing time, and it's a treat to hear him solo on alto flute on his own "Tutti Flutie" and to trade solos with Jaspar on Puma's "Bo-Do." It's a welcome reminder that long before he achieved crossover success and soul jazz stardom, Herbie Mann was an accomplished straight ahead player and composer, with exceptional touch and tone.

The rest of the recording features Jaspar leading a quintet with Flanagan and Donaldson returning and adding Doug Watkins on bass and Eddie Costa on vibes. Flanagan, Watkins and Jaspar each contribute a tune to the session, and there are strong solos from each member of the group. It continues in the same softly swinging, straight ahead mode of the Mann tracks.



Every player is a master of his axe, and the material is first rate throughout. This is a welcome reissue, and a must hear for any fan of jazz flute. ~ Schaun Dale



The use of the flute as an instrument of jazz improvisation goes back to Wayman Carver in the early 1930s. Harry Klee played it in the mid-Forties, but the flute did not become firmly established in jazz until the early 1950s, and then primarily as a secondary instrument for saxophonists. Herbie Mann, however, made it his primary horn and in the minds of the general jazz public quickly became synonymous with the flute. For recording, Mann occasionally teamed up with another flutist. One of his most successful partnerships was with Bobby Jaspar, a young Belgian who as a member of J.J. Johnson's quintet made an impact with both flute and tenor saxophone. In Flute Flight, as in Flute Souffle (OJC-760), Mann and Jaspar work with the elegant pianist Tommy Flanagan, guitarist Joe Puma, bassist Wendell Marshall, and drummer Bobby Donaldson. In his own session, Jaspar retains Flanagan and Donaldson and adds vibraharpist Eddie Costa and bassist Doug Watkins, both on the upswings of their too-brief careers. ~ Liner notes



Personnel:

Herbie Mann - flute, alto-flute

Bobby Jaspar - flute

Eddie Costa - vibraphone

Tommy Flanagan - piano

Joe Puma - guitar

Doug Watkins, Wendell Marshall - bass

Bobby Donaldson - drums



Herbie Mann & Bobby Jaspar - Flute Flight Tracks:

01 Tutti Fluti 10:05

02 Bo-Do 5:53

03 Flute bass blues 7:19

04 Flute Bob 6:57

05 Solacium 5:50